Northern Ireland

Call for urgent return of Stormont to see Gillen review implemented

Sir John Gillen's final recommendations have been welcomed as "the culmination of months of listening to victims and survivors of sexual violence". Picture by Liam McBurney/PA Wire
Sir John Gillen's final recommendations have been welcomed as "the culmination of months of listening to victims and survivors of sexual violence". Picture by Liam McBurney/PA Wire Sir John Gillen's final recommendations have been welcomed as "the culmination of months of listening to victims and survivors of sexual violence". Picture by Liam McBurney/PA Wire

VICTIMS of sexual violence "have waited long enough" for changes to the judicial system, as campaigners demand politicians return to Stormont to implement key changes in the Gillen Review.

Former Appeal Court judge Sir John Gillen's final recommendations have been welcomed as "the culmination of months of listening to victims and survivors of sexual violence, who have clearly and unambiguously stated that the criminal justice process needs to change".

The review was launched last year after a high-profile trial which saw former Ulster Rugby players Paddy Jackson and Stuart Olding found not guilty of rape.

Rape Crisis NI (RCNI) legal director Caroline Counihan said if implemented, its recommendations "should go a long way towards" ensuring survivors are "treated with dignity, respect and sensitivity".

RCNI singled out "early pre-recorded cross-examination", "radical steps" to combat court case delays and training for judges, barristers and solicitors in areas such as "rape mythology, the traumatic effects of sexual violence, jury misconceptions and jury guidance, under-reporting of sexual violence" for support.

It also calls for more publicly funded, independent legal advice for sexual violence victims.

A Sexual Violence Reduction Group has been established to `take forward' the recommendations in the report and Victim Support NI said they must be implemented "as a matter of urgency".

Chief executive Geraldine Hanna, a member of the Gillen Review Advisory Panel, said: "It is our collective duty to those victims and survivors to make sure that this report doesn’t sit gathering dust on a shelf.

"We are pleased that the work of (the Sexual Violence Reduction Group) has already begun and would echo Sir John's opinion that the majority of these recommendations can be implemented within weeks, if not months.

"We hope that the current talks process will quickly progress the return of a functioning assembly in order to implement those recommendations requiring legislative change.

"Victims and survivors of sexual violence and abuse, past and present, have waited long enough for a criminal justice system in which they can have confidence. We call on parties to get the institutions up and running as a matter of urgency."

Sinn Féin victims spokeswoman Linda Dillon agreed there is an "urgent" need for action, with the level of reporting of sexual offences "still unacceptably low".

"For those who do report to the police, the victim can often be subject to a humiliating and traumatic experience both in and before the courtroom which, coupled with mass delays in the criminal justice system, often leads to the abandoning of complaints and low conviction rates."

She said: "all parties and agencies must get to work immediately to ensure these recommendations are implemented and the procedure surrounding serious sexual offences is updated.

"Victims have been let down by the system for too long, and I’m hopeful that this report will be the first stage in ensuring that victims are supported and that justice is no longer impeded for victims."